Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm

1st watched 10/7/2001 - 6 out of 10(Dir-Mack V. Wright): Light-hearted western fare with Gene Autry and his sidekick 'Frog' mistakenly seen as outlaws who restled cattled, but end up being the heroes in the end. Good combination of music, action, a little romance, and the good repertoire between Autry and Frog make for a good time had for all. This is the 1st Gene Autry flick that I've seen and I'm hooked. Without the music, it would be pretty boring and the plot isn't that detailed but we don't really care because we know the good guys will win out in the end. Autry isn't the greatest actor but he has a good set of side kicks that help out this flaw, and besides when things start looking rough he can just pick up the guitar and get us all singing and toe-tapping. I see why my dad used to like this guy, and I'm glad they've preserved some of his films for us new guys to see.

Not one of Gene's better programmers mainly because of the cluttered plot that becomes confusing at times. The 60-minutes does have some good Lone Pine scenery, which means they get out of the woodsy San Fernando Valley. (I don't know about today, but in those days if the filming took place 50-miles or more from LA, the producers had to pay location costs, which is why so many of these low-budget oaters were shot just north of LA.) There's also some great stunt work hopping around on a wagon and a team of horses, while Gene and company offer up a tuneful version of Mexicali Rose, and Frog shows us how to squeeze a squeezebox. All in all, the movie's compensations come from the margins instead of the over-done plot.

When the story begins, Gene and Frog Millhouse (Smiley Burnette) are out chasing after some evil cattle rustlers. Now here's the crazy part...they find clothes from two of the gang and wear them...hoping to infiltrate the gang. But the almost end up getting hung when they are caught by a posse, as the gang ALSO killed two deputies. To find out how the pair get out of this mess and catch the leader of the baddies, you'll just have to see the film yourself!

"Rootin', Tootin' Rhythm" is a very good Gene Autry film, though not among his very best. Most of this is because of the music. While pleasant, the songs in this one aren't among the great singer's best....and while I usually HATE singing in movies, I love Autry as he really had a lovely voice and knew how to put over a tune. Apart from that, it's quite enjoyable and features some of the best stunt work you'll see in one of his movies.

This is one of Gene's early starring westerns for Republic filled with plenty of action and just enough music to keep it interesting. Quite obviously famed stuntman Yakima Canutt is at the helm. He had already perfected the stunt used many years later in "Ben-Hur" where the stuntman goes under the horses, then continues back to also go under the wagon. It's amazing to watch, and just as exciting in 1937 as it would be in 1959 when a chariot rather than a wagon is employed.

Gene croons a few numbers. My personal favorite is "Mexicali Rose." It was so loved by Gene's fans that he named one of his later oaters after it. Frog too gets to show off his varied musical talents. An accomplished songwriter, singer, musician, Smiley Burnette could play over one hundred instruments. Besides guitar, this outing Frog also plays up a storm on an accordion. Frog's humor left a lot to be desired but was appealing to the youngsters. In the early days, as in this film, Frog used a yell for assistance from Gene or out of frustration that was similar to one later used by Lou Costello to greater effect when calling for help from Bud Abbott.

The script if fairly routine, but involves so many mistaken identities involving donning other's clothing and going undercover that viewers may get confused at times, especially the kids. Gene and Frog slip out to chase rustlers. Not long afterward, Gene's cowhands joined by a few new recruits with suspicious credentials also slip out to chase the same rustlers. Two fugitives with a price on their heads shoot two lawmen and exchange clothing with them. Gene and Frog come upon the crime. They proceed to take the fugitives' cast off clothing and exchange it for their own. This leads to all sorts of complications to say the least which eventually involve two ladies who catch Gene and Frog asleep and hogtie them. This time there's not only a woman for Gene but a fairly good looking one for Frog as well. In future films, Frog would usually get stuck with wallflowers or frog lookalikes of a different gender. In the end Frog and Gene are able to extricate themselves from the situation and also from the two women. Frog says it best, "Say goodbye? Why, Lady, we never even said hello."

Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm has everything it takes to make a good cowboy movie, all the right cast members, great music, and beautiful scenery. Most of all it has a lot of action. This one has Gene Autry's best sidekick, Smiley Burnette as Frog Milhouse. That right there is enough to guarantee some fun.

The plot does not follow a clear line, and Gene makes a decision that is questionable. Rather than focus on the jumpy plot, one just has to follow the hero, Gene Autry, and all will work out in the end. Once the introductory scenes at the beginning of the movie are through Gene and Frog a constantly confronting bad guys and the women who think Gene and Frog are bad guys.

There are familiar faces in the cast. Charlie King was not utilized much in this movie, but his presence as a bad guy was part of so many westerns that his name alone justifies watching one more B western. Hal Taliaferro could be a good guy or bad guy. His roles varied in significance from movie to movie. In this movie he serves a purpose to the plot that ties things together at the end, but he really could have been on screen a bit more. Monte Blue was another actor who could be anything, good guy or bad guy, cowboy or indian. Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm had some of Republic's heavy hitters.

In his book, Singing in the Saddle, author Douglas B. Green wrote that regional western performers would make appearances in movies to get attention for those movies in their respective parts of the country. Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm is the only screen credit at IMDB for Al Clauser and His Oklahoma Cowboys. Notice how many songs they played to showcase their music. The promotion had to work for the cowboy band as much as it did for the movie producers.

Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm has everything for the B western fans and lovers of western music including Gene's hit song, Mexicali Rose.